Oakville MP ranked fifth most powerful person in Canada

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Published February 11, 2022 at 2:56 pm

Oakvillle MP Anita Anand is the recipient of the The United Nations Association in Canada's 2022 Global Citizen Award. FACEBOOK PHOTO

A “no-nonsense” approach and “capable management” of thorny issues has catapulted Oakville MP Anita Anand’s political career.

It’s also helped place her fifth overall on MacLean’s Magazine’s Power List.

The Liberal MP and rising political star is listed by MacLean’s as one of 50 Canadians who are forging paths, leading the debate and shaping how we think and live.

The Power List, which MacLean’s says, reflects the pressing issues facing the country, and the opportunities ahead, is topped this year by the unknown victims of residential schools — hundreds of children who lost their lives before they were finally heard.

Also ahead of Anand on the list include influential Canadians Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance; Tiff Macklem, governor of the Bank of Canada; and Supreme Court Justice Mahmud Jamal.

Anand, who became the first woman of colour to oversee the Canadian Armed Forces, was ranked ahead of other noted politicians including Francois Legault (No. 11), Doug Ford (No. 12) and Steven Guilbeault (No. 14).

After spending 25 years working in corporate and securities law, Anand has become one of the country’s rising political stars, according to the magazine.

“Despite, or perhaps because of, an aversion to showboating,” wrote MacLean’s writer Marie-Danielle Smith. “Her no-nonsense approach and capable management of thorny issues has earned her regular mentions on lists of potential successors to (Canadian Prime Minister and Liberal leader Justin) Trudeau.”

After winning her second election in two years, Anand says her first priority as federal defence minister is to ensure of cultural change in the military, so “everyone feels safe, protected and respected.”

That won’t be easy for Anand with numerous recommendations about sexual misconduct and military justice yet to be implemented, stemming from the large amount of class-action claims members of the military have made.

Go to MacLean’s Power List to see the full rankings.

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